British Leyland Motors

Although the memory of British Leyland is much maligned in both the United States and England, many of the cars that eventually fell under its corporate umbrella are truly beloved.

MGA 1600 Mk II coupe, 1962

The roots for British Leyland began to take form in 1952 when Austin and the Nuffield Group merged to form British Motor Corporation (BMC). The new company included Austin, the newly-birthed Austin-Healey, Morris, M.G., Riley, and Wolseley, as well as many suppliers of bodies, carburetors and other key components. In 1966, BMC and Jaguar-Daimler joined forces to create British Motor Holdings, and finally in late 1967—at the urging of the British government, BMH merged with Leyland (including Rover-Triumph) to create the British Leyland Motor Corporation.

Although the company was beset with poor management, low-productivity, extensive labor unrest and poor quality, it still continued to produce some very memorable sports cars, which were primarily intended for the American market. The cars of the BL era included Austin-Healey Sprite, Jaguar E-Type 4.2 and V-12, XJ-6, XJ-12, M.G. Midget, MGB, MGB/GT, MGC and MGC/GT, Triumph Spitfire, GT6 TR-250, TR-6, TR-7 and TR-8.

In addition to these popular British Cars, in the era long before British Leyland became a dirty word, the antecedent companies were responsible for some truly wonderful sports cars and sporting sedans. Those models included the M.G. TC, M.G. TD, M.G. TF, Austin-Healey 100/4, 100/6 and 3000, Jaguar XK-120, XK-140, XK-150, and the Triumph TR-2, TR-3, TR-4 and TR-4A.

More than 50 years after many of these cars first rolled out of the factories in Coventry, Abington, Warwick or Speke, many are still on American roads and cherished in American garages.